Blender's Game #1

I'm up way past my bedtime, but for good reason:  I've been experimenting with my lovely new Magic Bullet blender.  I had been wanting to try out some of the recipes that came with the blender.  Tonight, my boyfriend was kind enough to swing by the store after work and pick me up a few ingredients I had been meaning to get for a couple of weeks now.  He's nice like that.  Before I began my work, I thought it would be nice to blog about my most recent adventures in Magic Bullet ownership.

I got my nifty little blender for Christmas.  I made jerky chew with it the very first day, followed by cashew butter.  I pulverized about thirty-six Oreos to make Oreo balls.  I even made a "hand treatment" for Josh out of oatmeal, nutmeg, sugar, and olive oil, as his hands get horribly chapped in the winter.  Each of these little experiments turned out great.  So far, my blender hasn't contributed to any major kitchen disasters.  It sits there, all dark and sleek, like some sort of culinary monolith.

"ONE OF US!  ONE OF US!"

For my first recipe book experiment, I chose to try my hand at making chocolate mousse.  This recipe employs the whipping blade that came with the blender, and I used the smaller of the two cups.  All I used was heavy whipping cream and Hershey's Chocolate Syrup.  I poured the cream and squeezed out the syrup and proceeded to try and whip it all up.

Yep, that's mousse.

I took the blade off the cup and was seriously impressed.  It may sound dumb, but the ability to make mousse was the thing that convinced me about five years ago that I desperately needed a Magic Bullet blender one day.  I wondered if it was too good to be true.  But, lo and behold, the cream was whipped into a perfectly moussey consistency.  The mousse was pale, but the chocolate could definitely be tasted without being overpowering.  At some point, I think some chocolate coffee mousse should happen.

Next, I used the tall cup to make salsa.  I used a whole tomato, a good bit of onion, and a handful of jalapenos.  I believe the original recipe called for cherry tomatoes, but I think that's to put a greater focus on the lack of cutting that supposedly makes the blender so convenient.  I also used pickled jalapenos, as opposed to fresh ones.

So, I cut the tomato into wedges and decided to use only about half the original chunk of onion.  Of course, the onion was really strong, and it's awfully hard to put things in a blender with one eye squinted nearly shut because of the fumes.  I tossed it all into the blender along with a dash of garlic powder and a little parsley for flavoring.

It was strangely pretty.

The outcome was not so pretty.

I stared at the result through the side of the clear cup.  To be honest, I was a more than a little put off by the color of the salsa.  I had never seen salsa that consistency or color before.  I also didn't like the sound it made as it plopped into the Tupperware dish I poured it into, but maybe that's just me.  I dipped a cracker in it, gearing myself up to be disgusted.  Amazingly, the salsa was delicious.  It was a bit pulpy, but the tomato flavor really came out and it had a great lingering heat. Believe it or not, this is definitely a recipe I'll be making again.

So far, the Magic Bullet blender is my favorite kitchen appliance.  There's some fruit in the freezer, and tomorrow I'll post the result of my attempt at sorbet-making.  I want to create new recipes for this particular appliance, and I would love to hear about other "ten-second recipes" developed by Magic Bullet cultists owners out there.